'Utilitarian' is the fourteenth studio album by English grindcore legends Napalm Death, released on 27th February 2012 by Century Media Records.
Fourteen albums in and Napalm Death still remain the leaders of the grindcore world, once again showing everyone how it's done. 'Utilitarian' runs the gamut from straight-ahead violence and force to pure, undiluted Napalm-induced chaos that overall provides a well-rounded bloodletting that's not for the weak and also confronts the listener with surprising moments, such as the sax passages by none other than John Zorn on ‘Everday Pox’, or the choral-like clean sections in ‘Fall On Their Swords’ and ‘Blank Look About Face’.
True to the band’s tradition of spitting gallons of verbal venom, 'Utilitarian' is an in-your-face, razor-edged platter of social, cultural and political commentary. Far from being a placard-waving “cause” band, the quartet offer up personal views on the degeneration of society ('Everyday Pox'), the arms trade ('Fall On Their Swords'), sexual and gender expression (‘Gag Reflex’), the environment ('Order Of Magnitude') and aspects of every day life for the common man ('Collision Course' and 'Think Tank Trials') revealing Barney’s understanding of what to do with your life: “We have a finite period of existence that is all too easy to waste, and ultimately we all deserve happiness and contentment.” The bottom line is: Think for yourself, liberate yourself and don't end up feeding the machine that all too willingly eats you up.
2021 reissue
Tracklisting:
1. Circumspect
2. Errors In the Signals
3. Everyday Pox
4. Protection Racket
5. The Wolf I Feed
6. Quarantined
7. Fall on Their Swords
8. Collision Course
9. Orders of Magnitude
10. Think Tank Trials
11. Blank Look About Face
12. Leper Colony
13. Nom De Guerre
14. Analysis Paralysis
15. Opposites Repellent
16. A Gag Reflex
